Natani and Keith Wake Up
by olivediamond
Summary: Alternate version of page 986. What if Natani had stayed in bed with Keith?


Natani's ear twitched at the sounds of distant yelling that had woken her up.

'_Alright, who's yelling now?_' she thought to herself. Walking up to yelling was starting to become an unwelcome regular occurrence. For once, since joining this strange group, she'd have liked to wake up to an uneventful, normal morning. It seemed that every-

There was pressure and warmth on her chest.

Not normal. She looked down to see Keith snuggled up to her, fast asleep. His arms were around her waist and his head was on her breasts, looking for all the world like he hadn't been on a rope swing of emotions over the past few months. Natani mulled over both his unconscious boldness and how much closer they had grown. It was a strange concept for her considering that she'd spent most of her life keeping people away and now here they were. She sighed. Things were far from settled, but for the first time in her life, she was ok with it. She absentmindedly brought up a hand to brush his ears.

'_Who knows,_' she thought _'everything might even work out_.'

Keith stirred and Natani's hand froze at the back of his head. She cursed herself, having forgotten that Basitin ears were sensitive.

'_Ok...just stay real still and he'll go back to sleep, and no one else will have to know of any 'affectionate gestures'_'. She held her breath while Keith wriggled and repositioned himself in his sleep. She hoped she wouldn't have to chew her arm off at the shoulder to escape unnoticed. The Basitin Ambassador's unconscious mind had other plans as he gripped her tighter and slipped a leg between hers.

'_!*#$ Basitin, now I'll have to chew both of our arms off!_'. Still, she was relieved that that was all that happened. He wasn't awake and she might still get away without anyone having to confront such obvious displays of affection. Despite obvious concern, sharing a bed, and at least one full-spirited makeout session, the idea of labeling themselves didn't sit well with her.

There'd be time to contemplate her lack of commitment later. For now, she had to focus on the task at hand, escaping. She could start by untangling their legs to get some leverage, and then she might hold up Keith's arm so it wouldn't drop as she backed out.

All her careful scheming was rudely interrupted by a shift in her arms, a pressure under her jaw, and a small 'smeck!'. Natani looked down to see Keith sleepily smiling up at her.

"G'morning." He murmured as he stroked his hands up and down her back.

"UuuUUuuhh, Keeeeith, this is a dreeeeaaaam. Fish bak isn ta hak, see, I'm talking nonsense! Now, close your eyes and you'll wake up later."

Keith did close his eyes, but chuckled and snuggled up once more. "It's fine, Natani, you don't have to be embarrassed. It's only me."

She hesitated then held him back and started rubbing his ears again. Whatever mixed feelings were going through her head right now she would admit that the intimacy was nice. Keith gently stroking her and she him, legs entwined, each listening to the other breathing... It was something that she hadn't gotten a chance to experience. And here she was, still trying to hide it.

"I- I'm not embarrassed'' She murmured after a moment.

"Hm?"

"I'm not embarrassed by you. Us. Whatever this is. I'm sorry if I gave you that impression."

"I've spent so long hiding' everything. Where I came from, what happened to me, what I've done, what's between my legs. I've learned to walk and talk a certain way, disguise my scent, and take precautions out the wazoo to protect an image. In a way, deceit has become my life." Natani took a moment to reflect on how strange that sounded to say out loud.

"Anyway, what I'm trying to get at here is that when I say dumb things like that, it's not personal, it's just second nature to me. And- and-"

She couldn't believe what she was about to say. She shut eyes and decided it would be best to get it over with. It was for Keith.

"-and if you want me to start acting girly, then I will! I can wear pink frilly dresses and stop hiding my voice and scent! I'll even start wearing the small clothes that Kat made for me if you want!"

Natani waited for Keith to agree, that that's what he had wanted all along, and now she could start to be a 'proper woman' like Laura had been. Instead the bed shifted again and there was a hand caressing her cheek. Her eyes opened to see Keith had moved up to her level. He looked strange. Natani looked at every contour of his face for a clue, wide-eyed but not daring to move.

He was serene, she realized. This was the first time she'd seen him fully relaxed without one of them almost dying that day. Every other intimate moment there had either been a fire, spell, or some incident to mark the occasion. Even the last night's feast had started out with an explosion in the morning. Keith thought she had died.

_'And even then I could see how close he came to breaking_.' She thought, remembering her kiss, no, _peck_ at the docks. Her cheeks glowed at the memory, both in affection for Keith and remembering it had far too many witnesses to inhume.

"I love you Natani." said Keith. She was jarred out of her reminisce at his simple comment. If her cheeks were warm before, she was certain eggs could be cooked on them now. "And you don't need to change to try to please me. I love you for you. Whether you decide you want to start dressing like other women or to keep up your masculine traits, I'll still be right by your side."

Keith's simple yellow eyes lidded themselves further as he pulled himself halfway towards her. Halfway.

Natani hesitated. Put up or shut up time. In a way this was more nerve racking than that time in the baths. That could be put down to experimentation, but this kiss was a contract. Signing for a delivery of smooches and handholding. A declaration of mutually assured affection.

A thought occurred to her. She could pull away like she was teasing him, laugh it off or do something funny like smoosh a pillow in his face. Anything to avoid facing facts. He'd probably write it off as nerves and wouldn't press the issue. Then they'd go downstairs and eat breakfast and this little dance of hers would continue. She'd continue toying around with the idea of her and Keith until she and Zen worked out how to leave. And then they'd leave everyone behind. She'd leave Keith behind. Because avoiding open confrontation was an assassin's specialty.

Or she could try something different. Be bold. Jump in the water with both feet for once. Ever since her parent's death it seemed her life had been on one path. Join the Guild or starve. Take assignments or be exposed by Clovis. Run along with Trace and company or be attacked by whomever was chasing them at the moment. Up until Keith. Keith was something completely optional; a choice. Natani didn't have many choices in her life and here she was actually thinking of letting one go because she was nervous.

_'Heck with it._' She thought, closed her eyes and met Keith. Halfway.

Their lips pressed together in a deep kiss. She felt a pressure on her lower back, right above her tail. Keith's hand was drawing her close and she moved her hands to between his shoulder blades to return the gesture. Breast to chest, they engaged and disengaged over and over; sometimes in quick succession and other times holding it to experience the closeness of each other. Natani hummed into his mouth. It turned into a soft moan after he broke off to kiss the underside of her neck, below her jaw. Her breathing became heavier as he worked his way downwards, peppering alternate sides of her neck with kisses and throwing in the occasional nibble. She savored every sensation. Each time he pulled away was a moment filled with anticipation; filling her with yearning she never imagined anyone could have.

He had reached the top of her sternum when Natani got a naughty, wicked idea. Waiting until the Basitin had made contact again, she rolled over to pin him underneath her. It was daring, she had never done anything so bold, it was scary, she was in completely unknown territory and she had never felt such a rush. She grabbed his wrists and adjusted her straddle to make sure he was immobile. Not enough to hurt; just enough to make it clear that he wasn't supposed to move. Looking down at her newly-caught prey, a predatory grin grew on her face. He was breathing as heavily as she was and gazing up at her with half lidded eyes. Inch by inch she leaned forwards and downwards, letting her breasts rub against his torso while pushing his wrists up the mattress. She pushed until his hands were over his head and she could feel his breath on her muzzle.

Quick shallow breaths and a growing pressure against her rump revealed his desire. Keith craned his neck forwards to give another kiss but Natani pulled back, just out of reach. She shook her head.

"You're not in control here."

She slid both his wrists under her left hand and brushed his abs with her right. She dragged it up, over his pecs, over his collarbone until she had grabbed both sides of his jaw. Natani twisted his face to her right and brought her mouth to his ear. In a voice hardly louder than a breath, she whispered:

"I am."

Natani went for his neck, returning the favor from a moment ago. But where Keith had been gentle and loving, she was forceful and dominating. Kisses were quick and passionate, and at times she even traced little spirals with her tongue. These especially drew gasps from her victim, who writhed and wriggled underneath her to no avail. He was fully stiff now, she guessed by the pressure coming from his pants. She started to move her hips from side to side, even bouncing a little to tease him, letting him feel exactly what he wasn't having at the moment.

Growing bored of this section of neck, Natani drew back enough to turn Keith to face her before diving in again.

"I've got you, my pretty!" She declared as she kissed him again. Keith pushed against her grasp, eager to show affection but Natani was unrelenting. She pushed back, not with her hand, but with her tongue, invading his mouth in a sensation that made her feel weak and powerful all at once. Her muscle moved around and he rebelled in the only way he could by charging back into her maw. They rubbed against each other, wriggling in a sensual dance that elicited moans from both their owners.

Their mouths only parted to draw a quick breath before diving back into the fray. Her body had a mind of its own. Her hips were firmly pressed and gyrating against Keith while he thrust up and down in a primal rhythm. Natani was scarcely cognizant of her hand leaving Keith's face and teasing a downward line to his pants. Between thrusts she started pulling at his waistband, only tugging it up and letting it fall down at first. She stuck her fingers in, only two knuckles deep, and felt around the side of his waist to his rump. Wanting more, she inserted her hand further and squeezed his left cheek a little. Firm muscle greeted her as in contracted in time to his thrusts. Natani always forgot how much muscle his small frame held, it was like living brick with a thin veneer of fat.

Finally, she slid her hand back and gripped his thigh. She withdrew with aching slowness scratching him just enough to leave little temporary pink lines, if anyone would be close enough to see. In the same deliberate motion, she brought her hand up to his diaphragm and straight back down. Gripping his waistband, she started to pull down -

A series of knocks rapped out like thunder, freezing the pair.

"Wakey wakey, eggs and bacey, Natani!" Flora's voice called from the other side of the thankfully locked door. "Rose made breakfast!" Eyes the size of dinner plates looked at each other with tongues still not in the own mouths. As quiet as she could, Natani withdrew enough to speak.

"Uh, thanks stripes! I'll be down in a minute!" She replied, facing the door but not taking her eyes off the Basitin below her.

"Sounds great! I'll go get Keith while you're getting ready!"

"No!" Natani yelled a little too loud and a little too fast, covering Keith's mouth in case he spoke up. "I, uh, I mean I can hear him stirring, it sounds like he's already heard you. I'll bring him down with me when I go." She held her breath, hoping the Keidran would buy it and more importantly, go away. Thankfully, Flora gave a brief and cheery acknowledgment and Natani heard her footsteps fade down the hallway. She closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. That had been far closer than she was comfortable with.

The moment ruined, the pair untangled themselves and got up from the bed. Keith walked past the partition into his room while Natani started applying her pocket-dimension bindings. Keith returned a minute or two later fully dressed as she was putting on her vest.

Seeing as she was about ready, he opened to door a jar and turned to her.

"Breakfast?" He asked.

"Yeah."

She noticed as she followed him out the door that Keith seems a touch disappointed. Or maybe she was projecting. Whatever it was, this felt like a low note to end what had been an interesting morning.

Natani smirked with another awful idea. She looked around to make sure the hallway was clear before pouncing on him. Wrapping her arms around him, one hand stroking his chest and the other grabbing his crotch, she whispered something into his ears to the desired effect; they shot up like something else would later.

"See you tonight, loverboy~"


End file.
